Reversible sliding door panels



June 9, 1964 J. a. SULLIVAN 3,135,396

REVERSIBLE SLIDING DOOR PANELS Filed Sept. 10, 1962 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. JAGt'Sl/AZ IVA/V June 9, 1964 J. G. SULLIVAN REVERSIBLE SLIDING DOOR PANELS 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 10, 1962 m qm Il 5Q Niiiihiikd I m INVENTOR. Jmmsuun/A/V T] BY F 0 4446.,

1m 1954 J. G. SULLIVAN REVERSIBLE SLIDING DOOR PANELS 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Sept. 10, 1962 INVENTOR. 446661604 1 N44 June 9, 1964 J. 5. SULLIVAN REVERSIBLE SLIDING DOOR PANELS Filed Sept. 10, 1962 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR. Jlckasdz z MAM ArTMM/EyS United States Patent 3,136,396 REVERSIBLE SLIDING DOGR PANELS lack G. Sullivan, Detroit, Mich. (32880 Dequindre, Warren, Mich.) Filed Sept. 10, 1962, Ser. No. 222,270 1 Claim. (Cl. 189-46) The present invention relates to reversible doors such as patio doors or the like, and more particularly to an assembly of two or more metal framed glass doors which are slidably mounted for horizontal movements within a hollow frame.

I-Ieretofore, in door constructions of this type, such metal framed glass doors would either open to the right or to the left. This often necessitated the dealer stocking an excessive amount of door assemblies to meet this situation. p

One of the primary objects of the present invention is to provide a reversible door which can be changed from a left hand opening door to a right hand opening door within the same frame, but with slight modification merely by removing the door element from the frame or jamb and rotating the same 180 degrees about its central vertical axis, and re-introducing the same within the frame for movable mounting upon a threshold type of rail.

Another object of the present invention is to provide upon the overlapped edges'of a pair of such metal framed glass doors one of which is stationary and one of which is movable, cooperating opposed interlock rails which actually interlock in closed position of the movable door for effecting a seal therebetween.

One of the objects of the present invention in connection with the reversibility of the said doors as above set forth is to provide a center line type of construction and mounting for the said interlock rails so that same may be removed easily from the respective door frames and before or after the rotation of the individual doors about their respective vertical central axes, the said interlock rails are themselves rotated 180 degrees, but about a central horizontal axis for re-attachment to the inner overlapped edges of the doors. By this construction, when the doors are reversed said removable interlock rails are adapted for cooperation when the movable door is in its closed position.

These and other objects will be seen from the following specification and claim in conjunction with the appended drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of the present sliding door assembly.

FIG. 2 is a similar view of a three panel assembly.

FIG. 3 is a vertical section taken approximately through the central portion of the door assembly of FIG. 1, being also a section on line 3-3 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 4 is a section taken on line 44 of FIG. ,1.

FIG. 5 is a similar view, but with the left hand sliding door of FIG. 4 reversed 180 degrees about its central vertical axis taking the closed right hand position shown in FIG. 5.

FIG. 6 is a section taken on line 66 of FIG. 2 showing the central slidable door adapted for'movement to the right for opening.

FIG. 7 is a similar view with the central movable door reversed or rotated 180 degrees about its central vertical axis for opening movement to the left.

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary section on an increased scale taken on line 88 of FIG. 3, illustrating the securing means for the stationary door.

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary perspective view showing the cooperation of a pair of opposed interlock rails and the associate framework of a pair of overlapped doors such as is shown in FIG. 4.

3,136,396 Patented June 9, 1964 FIG. 10 is a fragmentary section taken on line 1010 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 11 is an elevational view in fragment of an interior portion of the door showing the handle construc-' tlOIl.

' FIG. 12 is an elevational view on an enlarged scale of the frame shown in FIG. 11 with the handle removed.

FIG. 13 is a fragmentary section taken on line 1313 of FIG. 12 with the opposing handles in assembled position with respect to the door frame.

FIG. 14 is a fragmentary elevational section illustrating a threshold construction differing partly from the threshold shown in FIG. 3 so constructed with a movable door mounted upon an exterior rail and the movable screen assembly mounted upon an interior rail.

FIG. 15 is a fragmentary elevational section showing the threshold assembly of FIG. 3, on a slightly increased scale and showing the active panel wiper or air sealing meansassociated with the undersurface portion of the sliding door. t

It will be understood that the above drawings illustrate merely a preferred embodiment of the invention, and that other embodiments are contemplated within the scope of the claim hereafter set forth.

Referring to the drawings, FIG. 1 shows a sliding door assembly which includes a hollow rectangular jamb 11 nested within an opening 10 within a building 9 fragmentarily shown and including the upright end rails 12, top rail 13 and the extruded or formed threshold 14. With respect to FIGS. 1 and 4, there is shown an upright stationary metal framed glass door 15 which is secured within the one-half portion of the jamb 11. FIG. 1 shows an exterior metal framed screen 16 normally mounted over the other half portion of the jamb and movably mounted upon suitable guide means hereafter describedwithin said jamb, said screen including a suitable opening handle.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, there is provided an elongated upright guide rail 17 which is arranged upon and along the threshold 14 throughout its length adapted to guidably and movably receive the support rollers 22 which are journaled at 21 upon the supporting assembly 20 within the framework upon the lower undersurface of the movable door 18, which door as best shown in FIG. 4 includes a pair of parallel spaced glass elements 19 suitably sealed within the door frame in a conventional manner. I

Means are also provided within the jamb 11 for guidably receiving the upper edge of the movable door 18. For this purpose, the said means include as shown in FIG. 3 the extrusions 38 which are so undercut or formed as to cooperatively receive fabric or nylon wiping seals 39' which cooperatively and slidably register with upper edge portions of the framework of the metal framed glass door 18 for the primary purpose also of supporting the movable door in the upright position shown and for maintaining a seal between the said door and the framework or jamb.

Upon the overlapped inner edges of the pair of laterally displaced stationary door 15 and movable door 18 there are provided the upright parallel spaced outwardly directed flanges 23 which cooperatively and interlockingly receive corresponding inwardly directed flanges 24 which form a part of the upright interlock rails 25 which are of extruded formation and which bear against the upright edges of the respective door frames and are suitably secured thereto as by a plurality of fasteners 26, in FIG. 4. Each of the interlock rails 25 includes the sealing flange 27 which as shown in FIG. 4 are oppositely directed for cooperatively interlocking relationship when the movable door 18 is in the fully closed position. The door 18 in FIG. 5 is not quite closed for illustrative purposes only, and in closed position the flanges 27 would be in contacting interlocked sealing relation.

A stationary panel includes the hollow metallic rectangular frame 28 within which is nested and sealed in a conventional manner the upright glass 29' completing the construction of the stationary panel 15.

The stationary panel 15 is mounted in an upright position within the jamb 11 over the central threshold portion 30 thereof as shown in FIG. 3, and at its upper horizontal edge portion is retained within extrusions 33 forming a part of the top rail of the jarnb 11. The securing of the stationary panel 15 within the said jamb is accomplished by employing an upright anchor plate 31, FIG. 8 which bears against the outer edge of the stationary panel between its flanges 23 and is fixedly secured thereto by the fasteners 33. In the illustrative embodiment of the invention there are provided a pair of L-shaped detents 32 which extend through corresponding apertures in the threshold element 30 engaging the undersurface thereof, providing an effective means of anchoring this stationary panel within the jamb. As a part of the versatility factor of the stationary panel 15, the said anchor plate 31 is so constructed as to be easily removable so that the stationary panel may be removed from the jamb, rotated 180 degrees about its vertical central axis and repositioned within the said jar'nb as shown in FIG. 5. Again the anchor plate 31 is reassembled and secured as at 33, FIG. 5 by employing the said anchor plate 31. The threshold 14 at its central portion also includes the elongated bead 33' to facilitate locating and positioning in the anchoring of the stationary panel. 15. Doors 15 and 18, FIG. 4, may be removed and each rotated 180 degrees about its central vertical axis and reversely positioned to occupy the respective other halves of the jamb, FIG. 5. reverses the direction of opening movement of door 18. Interlock rails 25 must be removed respectively, rotated 180 degrees about their horizontal central axes and reattached to the inner overlapped edges of the doors, FIG. 5.

Referring to FIG. 4, the hollow jamb 11 which mounts the stationary and movable door elements as a part of its opposed upright side rails has additional extrusions 34 which cooperatively and retainingly receive the sealing means 35 adapted to engage the upright side marginal edges of the respective hollow door frames 15 and 18.

Furthermore, the interlock rail-assemblies 25 have the elongated undercut slots 36 therein, FIGS. 4 and 9 adapted to receive and mount the additional sealing elements 37 for cooperative engagement with the respective overlapped edge portionsof the door panels 15 and 18.

Additionally, the framework for the movable door 18 along its lower edge in FIG. 3 is provided with additional extrusions 41 which are undercut and which cooperatively receive and mount the inwardly directed sealing elements 41 which are adapted to cooperatively engage the rail 17 to thus complete the seal of the movable door or panel assembly 18 within the, jamb 11.

Stop Plate Assembly for the Movable Door Referring to FIG. 10 the upper portion of the jamb 11 within the plane thereof which corresponds to the movable metal framed glass door 18 has secured therein the L-shaped stop plate 42 employing fasteners 43 which engage apertures 45 formed through the top rail 13. A re- This silient cushion 44 of rubber, or artificial rubber or other resilient material is fixedly secured to the said stop plate and is adapted to yieldably and cooperatively receive the upright edge of the movable door panel 18 when it is moved to fully opened position. As further shown in FIG. 10 the L-shaped stop plate may be easily removed from the position shown and transferred to the left end side portion of the jamb as indicated in dotted lines, particularly where the panel 18 is reversed as above de scribed so as to open to the left as shown in FIG. 5. It

is also contemplated as a part of the present invention that there may be additional L-shaped stop plates permanently located at the left side of the jamb now shown in dotted lines in FIG. 10, if desired.

Screen Assembly The sliding screen generally indicated at 16, FIG. 1

includes the hollow rectangular extruded metal frame.

46 and mounted within the channeled upper and lower portions thereof are pairs of supporting rollers 47 which are adapted for movable mounting upon the elongated rail 48 which forms a part of the threshold 14 and projects upwardly therefrom as best shown in FIG. 3. This construction provides a means by which the screen shown in FIG. 1 at 16 may be slid longitudinallyto the right of FIGn-l as desired. The screen assembly includes a flexible wiping seal 49 best shown in FIG. 4 for cooperative engagement with portions of the stationary panel 15 as the screen is opened to the dotted line position shown in FIG. 4. The screen at its upper edge is also guidably positioned within extruded portions 38 of the top rail 13 for supporting the same as shown in FIG. 3.

Door Handle Assembly One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a'center line construction whereby due to the symmetrical mounting of the door handles 51 upon the metal framework of the movable panel 18 it becomes a relatively simple matter to mount and secure the said handles upon the movable panel Whether it is employed in the position shown in FIG. 4 or in reverse position shown in FIG. 5. This construction is shown best in FIGS. 11, 12 and 13. As best shown in FIG. 13, the metal framework of the movable panel 18 at the location of mounting of the door handles or door posts is inwardly depressed as at 50, actually upon both sides of FIG. 13, depending upon which side of the door the latch arm 55 is to be arranged. One of the elements 50 is knocked out as shown at 49 for illustration in order to permit the insertion of the latch control element 57 into the interior of the door frame. The symmetrical door pulls or handles 51 are arranged upon opposite sides of the door frame as shown in FIG. 13 and are secured together by the fasteners or screws 53 which bear against the corresponding ledges 52 of the respective door pulls, extend through the hollow framework and threadedly engage the other door handle at 54 completing the assembly.

The supporting shaft 56 for the latch 57 is journaled through, for example, the right hand handle 51 of FIG. 13, extends through the framework of the movable panel 18, mounting the latch element 57 therein and extends through an aperture in the depressed plate formation 50 as at 53. The said latch also includes-the control handle secured upon the outer end portion of the rotatable shaft 56, suitable means being employed for retaining the shaft 56 against transverse longitudinal movement in its assembled position.

FIG. 14 is primarily for the purpose of illustrating a slightly different form of threshold construction 59, corresponding to the threshold 14 of FIG. 3, but wherein it is noted that the elongated support rail 60 for the movable panel 13 is arranged so as to be upon the exterior of the opening. The threshold assembly also includes the exterior formation 61 in the central portion of the threshold which along its outer edge is undercut to receive the wiping seal 62 which cooperatively registers with an inner edge portion of the movable panel 18 fragmentarily shown. Additionally, the said threshold 59 includes the elongated upright rail 63 adapted to movably mount the interior screen assembly 15 fragmentarily shown.

Active Panel Wiper I In order to further seal the moving panel 18 with respect to the door jamb and the supporting rail 17, there is shown in FIG. 15 insert of felt or nylon mounted as at 64 upon the lower portion of the movable panel 18.

The active panel wiper or felt or nylon insert 64 is retained in position by the interlock rail 25 fragmentarily shown in FIG. 15. The said wiper 64 depends within and from the lower edge portion of the movable panel 18 and is grooved so as to cooperatively and sealingly receive portions of the panel mounting rail 17 as at part 65. One portion of the wiper 64 depends below movable panel for cooperative engagement with the threshold as at 66 to complete the wiping seal construction and to provide a means for sealing out the outside atmosphere when the sliding panel is in its fully closed position.

Three Panel Assembly A door assembly including three panels is shown in FIGS. 2, 6 and 7, and is of a construction very similar to what has been above described with respect to FIGS. 3, 4 and 5, and parts which are similar have been similarly numbered in the illustrations and drawings, the description thereof will not be repeated.

In the door assembly shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, there is provided within the central one-third portion of the jamb 11' a movable metal framed glass door 18 above described with respect to FIG. 4 and which is movably positioned upon the rail 17 as above described. In FIG. 6, the door 18 moves to the right for opening purposes, and due to the symmetrical center line construction of the said door panel may be rotated 180 degrees about its central vertical axis and repositioned as shown in FIG. 7. In this construction, it is seen that the door assembly 18 is then free to move to the left for opening movements. In both FIGS. 6 and 7, movable door 13 is considered to be upon the interior of the building opening such as may be used for patio doors. In addition to the movable panel 18, there is provided within the outer one-third of the jamb 11' a pair of coplaner upright spaced stationary panels 15 and 15' which in the manner above described are secured immovably in the position shown by virtue of the stop plates 31 above described. In the construction shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, there is employed an intermediate upright extruded or formed stop rail 67 which as shown in FIG. 6 extends between the threshold and the top rail 14 and 13 respectively as in FIG. 2 and is fixedly secured in position. The central portion 68 of the said stop rail cooperatively receives the upright edge portion of the frame of the stationary door panel 15' suitably sealed therein as at 35. An oppositely directed outer portion of the said stop rail as at 69 cooperatively receives the metal frame sliding screen 16 when it is in its fully closed position FIG. 6. The stop rail 67 also includes an extruded formation at 70 which cooperatively receives and seals at 35 one of the upright edge portions of the movable panel 18 when same is in its fully closed position corresponding substantially to what is shown in FIG. 6. The construction of stationary panel 15 is exactly the same as above described with respect to FIG. 4 and its detail is not repeated. Suffice to say, however, that both of the panels 15 and 18 have mounted over their laterally displaced overlapped inner edges the respective interlock rails 25 with their inwardly directed flanges 27 adapted for cooperative sealing engagement when the movable panel 18 is in its fully closed position. Should it be desired to employ the three panel assembly in FIG. 6 in such a manner that the door instead of opening to the right in FIG. 6 opens to the left as in FIG. 7, all that is necessary is to rotate movable panel 18 when removed from the jamb 180 degrees about its central vertical axis so as to be repositioned as shown in FIG. 7 within the jamb. In doing this, however, or in setting up the panel for the initial installation, the stop rail 67 must also be removed from the position shown in FIG. 6 rotated 180 degrees about its central horizontal axis and repositioned within the jamb 11' as shown in .FIG. 7.

At the same time, the interlock rail 25 of the movable door must be removed, rotated degrees about its central horizontal axis and reattached, FIG. 7. Also, the interlock rail 25 of panel 15 is removed, similarly rotated and reattached to the other panel. Thus the parts will assume the position shown in FIG. 7 wherein the interlock rails are so arranged to cooperate in exactly the same manner as above described with respect to FIG. 6 and the corresponding FIG. 4.

Since the constructions are symmetrical and the only difference being the addition of the panel 15', and of course, the additional stop rail 67, further detail of description is omitted.

The present construction shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 as well as FIG. 2 is illustrative of the fact that there is such symmetry between the metal framed glass door panels as will provide their reversibility as above described.

Having described my invention, reference should now be had to the following claim.

I claim:

In a door assembly for a building opening, an open rectangular frame including a threshold, an elongated upright guide rail upon and along said threshold, an upright metal framed glass door normally occupying the central one-third of said frame, mounted on said rail for opening movement in one direction, an upright stop rail within said frame cooperatively receiving one edge of said door when fully closed, means on said frame guidably receiving the upper edge of said door, a pair of spaced upright first and second coplanar stationary metal framed glass panels secured within and occupying the outer one-third of said frame, parallel to and laterally spaced from said movable door, said first stationary panel and said movable door overlapping at their inner upright edges, upright interlock rails removably mounted upon and along the respective inner overlapped edges of said movable door and said first stationary panel, and said rails including oppositely directed flanges in interlocked relation when the movable door is fully closed relative to said stop rail, said second stationary panel at its inner upright edge cooperatively received by said stop rail, said movable door adapted for rotation 180 degrees about its central vertical axis and remonntable upon said rail for opening movement in the opposite direction, said stop rail being removable and rotatable 180 degrees about its central horizontal axis and repositioned and secured within said frame to cooperatively receive one edge of the repositioned movable door when in closed position, said first stationary panel at its inner upright edge cooperatively received by said repositioned stop rail, said-interlock rail on said movable door being removable from the corresponding edge of said movable door, rotatable 180 degrees about a central horizontal axis and reattachable to said edge, the interlock rail on said first stationary panel being removable therefrom rotatable 180 degrees about a central horizontal axis and reattachable to the inner edge of the second stationary panel, the respective flanges of said interlock rails being in interlocked relation with the movable door in fully closed position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,719,340 Best et al. Oct. 4, 1955 2,847,726 Frick Aug. 19, 1958 2,913,046 Sharp et al. Nov. 17, 1959 2,950,756 Maloney Aug. 30, 1960 3,055,064 Riegelman Sept. 25, 1962 3,097,401 Riegelman July 16, 1963 

